Report: Fast and Furious originated at highest levels of DOJ

Holder has denied he or anyone in the Department of Justice’s leadership knew of or approved gunwalking related to Fast and Furious.

But this new congressional report, released Tuesday by House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa and Sen. Chuck Grassley — both Republicans — concludes senior Obama administration officials appear to have set the stage for, and possibly encouraged, ATF officials to walk guns into Mexico.

The report finds that Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer, who leads the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, told Holder about the Firearms Trafficking Working Group (FTWG) in an Aug. 19, 2009, memo of recommendation.

“The FTWG’s mission was to formulate a plan to improve the U.S. government’s efforts in stemming the illegal flow of weapons, which was fueling escalating violence along both sides of the Southwestern border,” the report reads. “The working group’s first recommendation was that the ‘attorney general and secretary of Homeland Security should form an interagency Southwest Border (‘SWB’) firearms trafficking strategy group.’ According to the Justice Department, ‘the deputy attorney general responded to the specific proposals in this memorandum by forming the Southwest Border Strategy Group, which he chaired.’”

Shortly thereafter, then-Deputy Attorney General David Ogden, the No. 2 official in the Department of Justice, drafted and disseminated a new planning document titled “Strategy for Combating the Mexican Cartels.”

In that document, Ogden laid the groundwork for the Obama administration’s senior-level political support of gunwalking.

The report puts the operational blame on 5 ATF officials, all of which are still employed, but still could not determine who authored the scheme, or who ultimately authorized it, thanks to the DOJ stonewalling efforts.

Perhaps signaling their desperation this close to the election, the DOJ responded to the report by trying–incredibly– to trot out the “Bush did it too meme” yet again, which is stunning since Attorney General Holder himself has been forced to twice refute that claim under oath during congressional testimony.

““Bush did it too meme” yet again, which is stunning since Attorney General Holder himself has been forced to twice refute that claim under oath during congressional testimony.”

No it’s not stunning. It just shows Holder and his capos have poor memories about which lie they told to whom and when. A friend once advised me to always tell the truth in every situation. That way, you don’t have to have a good memory to keep track of the trail of lies behind you.

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